


Sneezes

by cosmic_llin



Series: Fandom Stocking 2013/14 [8]
Category: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Genre: Ficlet, Friendship, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Sickfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-10
Updated: 2014-01-10
Packaged: 2018-01-08 05:40:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 506
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1128989
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cosmic_llin/pseuds/cosmic_llin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dax has flu and it's the worst ever.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sneezes

**Author's Note:**

  * For [silly_cleo](https://archiveofourown.org/users/silly_cleo/gifts).



‘You don’t  _look_  like you have the flu,’ said Ben Sisko, as Jadzia Dax shuffled into his quarters wrapped in a blanket, and flopped onto the couch.  
  
‘ _I_  don’t have flu,’ she said. ‘The symbiont does. I don’t know where we could have caught it, but I...’  
  
She paused, suddenly her eyes had a faraway look - then she jumped like she’d been shocked.  
  
‘What was that?’ he asked.  
  
‘That was the symbiont sneezing,’ she said glumly. ‘It’s happening at least every couple of minutes.’  
  
‘Symbionts can  _sneeze_?’ He was having trouble not smiling.  
  
‘Oh, wipe that smirk off your face, Benjamin,’ she said. ‘Yes, symbionts can sneeze, I wish they couldn’t. Can’t you just cook me something nice to cheer me up and stop laughing at my misery?’  
  
‘What do you want?’  
  
‘Jambalaya,’ she said, without a moment’s hesitation.  
  
He raised his eyebrows. ‘It’ll take at least an hour.’  
  
‘I can wait,’ she said, stretching out on the couch so that her feet hung over the end. ‘Oh, and can you bring me another pillow? What’s this couch made of, rocks?’  
  
He put down the report he had been working on, fetched her a pillow and set to work. From the couch behind him Dax interrupted occasionally with suggestions which he ignored - damned if anyone was going to tell him how much onion to put in jambalaya, even if she was his best friend.  
  
‘This ever happen to you before?’ he asked, over his shoulder.  
  
‘Three times,’ she said. ‘It’s harder to symbionts to catch viruses, but not impossible. Audrid had it, and Emony, and Torias. Curzon thought he did once, but it turned out to be a hangover.’  
  
Ben let out one short, sharp laugh. ‘Why am I not surprised?’ he asked. ‘Is there a cure?’  
  
‘Julian gave me something, but it takes a day to take effect. I don’t know if I can wait that long to feel better.’  
  
He heard her let out a weary sigh. It was funny, he’d been in battle with both Curzon and Jadzia and seen both of them suffer painful, dangerous injuries. He’d watched both of them risk life and limb with a cheerful smile. But now Jadzia was sprawled dramatically, making noises like a dying sea creature.  
  
‘Benjamin,’ she said, weakly, ‘I don’t suppose you could fix me a hot toddy, too? Not a replicated one, a real one.’  
  
His carefully-hoarded stock of ingredients was diminishing by the minute.  
  
‘All right,’ he said anyway.  
  
‘And maybe fetch me something warm to cuddle? And some more pillows? And a book to read? Nothing too heavy going.’  
  
Assembling everything took a couple of minutes. When Ben got back Jadzia was still making noises, but this time they were rhythmic, gentle snores. It could have been worse - Curzon had a snore like a laser saw cutting through duranium.  
  
He tucked the blanket in around her shoulders and feet and put everything else in a pile beside the couch. If he knew Dax, she’d wake up when the jambalaya was ready.


End file.
